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Organic health

Organic crops are grown without pesticides, artificial fertilisers and processed without food additives. Organic meat and seafood is produced without antibiotics or growth hormones. An organic farming system doesn't use any type of synthetic chemicals or genetically modified organisms.

Australian Certified Organic (ACO) currently certifies about 55% of the Australian organic industry and is the largest organic certifier in Australia. Organic certification requires different standards than the regular Food Standards requirements.

Farmers are able to grow their food organically by caring for the soil, which not only makes for healthy food but also a healthy environment. Organic systems rely on a modern and scientific understanding of ecology and soil science, while also depending on traditional methods of crop rotation, to ensure fertility and to assist weed and pest control.

To keep their soil fertile without adding chemical or artificial fertilizers, organic farmers rotate their crops, grazing sheep in one paddock one year and then growing wheat in that same paddock the next. The sheep help to make the soil fertile for the coming wheat crop.

Children and organic food

A 2001 study by the Environmental Protection Agency in the US showed that children receive 50 per cent of their lifetime risks of cancer during their first two years of life.

Another similar study in 2006 measured the levels of organophosphorus pesticide exposure in 23 preschool children before and after replacing their diet with organic food. In this study it was found that levels of organophosphorus pesticide exposure dropped dramatically and immediately when the children switched to an organic diet.

Children aged six years and under have less fat and more water in their bodies than adults. This means they are less able to trap and store the water soluble chemical toxins, such as pesticides, in their fatty tissue. Also, children's organs, particularly the kidneys, have less ability to detoxify their bodies of the pesticides as their organs are still maturing.

Organic food is more expensive than regular food and also won't keep fresh as long because it doesn't have additives like regular food. It will be some time before we can all afford to only eat organic, however if you want to include some organic food in your child's diet, pick organic fruit and vegetables, which will reduce exposure to chemical toxins.

Up until recently, organic food could only be bought from specialist stores and farmer's markets however, supermarkets now stock many organic food varieties.